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The eyewitness

An eyewitness who documented the results of an extensive Brazilian police operation in Rio de Janeiro has described how local people came back with badly injured victims of those who had died.

The casualties "continued arriving: the count kept increasing", the photographer described. Among them were security forces.

A particular victim was discovered headless - while others appeared "severely damaged", he reported. Numerous victims displayed what appeared to be blade trauma.

In excess of 120 victims lost their lives during the security action against a criminal group - the bloodiest action in the city.

The eyewitness stated that residents first notified him to the raid in the early hours by local people from the Alemão area, who sent him messages alerting him an armed confrontation was occurring.

The photographer went to the Getúlio Vargas hospital, where the bodies were being brought.

The photographer stated that security forces blocked media personnel from accessing the affected area, where the operation was under way.

"Police officers established a perimeter and said: 'The press doesn't get past here'."

But Itan, who spent his childhood in the area, stated he managed to make his way past the security perimeter, where he stayed through the night.

He described that evening, area inhabitants commenced searching the hillside that borders Penha from the nearby Alemão neighbourhood for loved ones who had been missing since the police raid.

Local people from the Penha area organized the located casualties in an open area - the photographer's images display the response of those present.

"The harsh reality of it all shook me a lot: the grief of loved ones, mothers fainting, expectant spouses, sobbing, furious relatives," the photographer recalled.

Bruno Itan

The official of the state stated that the massive police operation with approximately 2,500 law enforcement members was aimed at preventing an illegal organization referred to as Comando Vermelho from increasing their control.

At first, the Rio state government maintained that sixty individuals plus four law enforcement personnel" had been killed in the raid.

Officials subsequently stated that early calculations shows that 117 individuals lost their lives.

The public legal service, that offers legal help to the poor, has put the final tally of casualties at 132.

Per investigative findings, the gang stands as the sole illegal faction that in the past few years has managed to increase its control in the state of Rio de Janeiro.

Experts commonly view as a major illegal faction in Brazil, alongside First Capital Command, featuring a timeline extending half a century.

Per correspondent an expert, with extensive experience documenting illegal operations in Rio over many years, the gang "operates like a franchise" with local criminal leaders affiliating with the group and serving as "commercial associates".

The criminal group focuses mainly on drug trafficking, additionally trafficking weapons, valuable minerals, petroleum products, beverages cigarettes.

Per law enforcement statements, organization members are well armed and officials reported that while the action was underway, they faced assaults from explosive-laden drones.

The governor of Rio state, Cláudio Castro, characterized Red Command members as "narcoterrorists" and described the four police officers killed in the raid as brave public servants.

However, the count of people killed in the operation has come in for criticism from UN human rights officials saying it was "shocked".

In a media appearance the following day, the official defended the police force.

"We did not plan to result in deaths. We wanted to take suspects into custody without harm," he said.

He further explained that the situation had escalated because the suspects resisted aggressively: "It resulted of the counterattack they carried out and the overwhelming response by those criminals."

The official further reported that the victims shown by residents in the area had been "tampered with".

In a post on online platforms, he claimed that particular individuals had been stripped of the camouflage clothing which he claimed they wore "to redirect responsibility toward law enforcement".

Felipe Curi of Rio's civil police force also said that tactical gear, vests, and firearms" were taken away from the casualties and displayed evidence apparently demonstrating a man removing tactical gear {off a corpse